It Doesn't Have to be Cold Outside
by TheTrueItaly
Summary: It's a beautiful Christmas Eve and Love is, of course, warm in the air. NaLu one-shot! This is for EsteVamp4998's The World of Fairy Tail Writing Challenge!


The chilly air bit Lucy's skin as she walked back to her apartment. She had just gotten back from a job, and she remembered the happy faces of 'Team Natsu' as she left to travel back home, especially the face of the crazy dragon-slayer with candy-floss hair. She smiled at the thought of the boy and that vision distracted her from all the glistening lights around her, the garland, and the happy singing. They had been on the job for a few days, and the whole group had lost track of the time. Not one of them remembered the special day that took place at this moment.

When she got to her door, Lucy reached into her pocket to retrieve her apartment key, but only found the ones containing her Celestial companions. Her eyes widened a bit in shock as she checked all of her pockets, but not finding her desired key.

_I must've left it at the guild!_ She thought as she turned back to the large building and dashed towards it.

The snow stung her eyes as she ran, and her nose turned a slight shade of cherry. The wind plugged her ears and covered any evidence of the voice calling her name. Her eyes closed as to not allow the snow to invade her irises, and she soon felt the pressure of running into a warm body. Her head crashed against the stranger's chest as she fell to the ground, simultaneously with the man she came in contact with. As her head hit the ground, and the snow came in contact with the back of her neck, she sat up quickly and opened her eyes.

In front of her lied a certain dragon-slayer that sat up groggily as he shook the snow out of his candy-colored hair. His golden eyes opened up slowly as his gaze rested on the blond girl in front of him. His drowsy expression immediately turned to excitement as he stood up and grabbed Lucy's hands. He swiftly pulled her up, shaking the snow from her shivering torso, and grinned widely at her.

"Lucy! You gotta' come back to the guild! I need to show you something! PLEEEEASE!" Natsu exclaimed excitedly.

"Well, I was going back anyway, since I think I lost my keys..." Lucy replied, a tad confused.

"Great!" Natsu exclaimed, oblivious to Lucy's earlier comment, as he grabbed her hand and started to drag her towards the guild hall.

The two ran through the plush snow as it seemed to fall down harder and faster with every rushed step. Lucy's body seemed to turn numb with cold as her clothes soaked with the falling snow. Everything was cold, except for her hand, which was still enclosed in Natsu's surprisingly soft grip. Natsu soon started to slow down, as the glittering lights vanished from view and trees enclosed around them. When he fully stopped, his hand loosened its grip, but Lucy only grasped it tighter, not wishing to release the warm skin. She looked around to see they were in a small forest, and the music from the city could barely be heard.

"Um, Natsu, where are we?" Lucy asked, confused by her new surroundings.

Though, Natsu only replied with a small, "Exactly where I want us to be." before pulling Lucy down into the snow as he flopped down on his back.

Lucy gave a small gasp as her flesh met the icy ground, but relaxed as she concentrated on the hand that was entwined with her own. She looked to the boy beside her, as he smiled widely and looked over to her. Their eyes met for a few seconds, before they darted away from each other's gaze in a small blush. Suddenly, Natsu, with his hand still grasping Lucy's, pointed to the sky happily. Lucy's gaze trailed to the sky above, and she was met with glittering lights brighter than she had ever seen. She gasped at the beautiful sight as she stared at the beauty above her. The two sat there for a while, in complete bliss as they stared at the stars above. The music could be faintly heard from the city, and Lucy subconsciously sung along with the tune that played from various speakers.

"I really can't stay… I've got to go away… This evening has been… So very nice…" she hummed happily, gazing at the stars.

Natsu's gaze was now directed at her once again, his golden eyes widened at the sound of her voice, as he found it wasn't so bad. No, to him, it was beautiful. He didn't dare even breathe as he listened, afraid to lose a single moment of her sweet voice. He could've listened to it forever, but, sadly, the song came to an end as Lucy's voice turned quiet. Her eyes slowly closed in content, forgetting everything around her, whilst Natsu stared at her in wonder. She was beautiful, as the light from the stars reflected off of her eyes in a magical way. Though, Lucy's body suddenly quivered as it was struck with the cold wind blowing down her arms. Without thinking, Natsu brought his arm upwards, releasing his grip on Lucy's hand, and wrapped it around her shoulders, pulling her closer to him. Lucy's eyes widened in surprise, but she stayed silent and gazed into the dragon-slayer's eyes once more. Her body was suddenly engulfed in warmth as she sat near Natsu, and she didn't want to leave this embrace. Fortunately, Natsu didn't either.

"You know…" Natsu started after a few seconds of silence, "it doesn't have to be cold outside."

"I know…" was all Lucy replied as she snuggled into Natsu's chest, surprising both him, and herself.

Now, they happily enjoyed this single embrace as the stars shown even brighter at this moment of happiness.

"Hey, Lucy?" Natsu asked as the bells tolled from the town, signaling midnight.

Lucy hummed in response.

"Merry Christmas." he said as he kissed her on the cheek.


End file.
